5 Minutes with CEO Melanie Mohr

The Conference is a few weeks away from happening. We are using this blog to introduce you some of our speaker. In our very first of the series we are introducing you Melanie Mohr, whose company YEAY is driving mobile-commerce into the mainstream. We’ve sat down with the CEO to give you an insight to her product

(Image: me-convention.com)

Hi Melanie. Can you tell our readers what YEAY does?

YEAY is the leading video-based commerce platform providing Generation Z (those born between 1995–2005) with a social space to share styles and shop fashions — and brands with a marketplace to reach and reward them for their engagement. The app came out of beta in January 2017 and its dedicated community share videos about the brands they love — and get rewarded — for their honest product recommendation videos.

2) As CEO of YEAY what do you do on a daily basis?

Communication is the biggest part of my daily life. I am continually telling the story and explaining — and aligning — stakeholders to the vision of my company. That includes everyone from potential and future partners, to existing and new investors, to the team.

3) When did you personally become interested in Blockchain & Cryptocurrencies?

I first properly got into cryptocurrencies early in 2017. I became obsessed and started reading up on it every day, my Feedly quickly filled with Bitcoin and crypto news sources that I would check first and last thing every night. I am still very much a newbie to this space, but I began to see the power of the underlying software and the beauty in decentralised concepts and this is what really hooked me — the opportunity to reverse some of the negative effects that Web 2.0 and the centralisation of data have had.

4) Why is now such an interesting time in the Crypto space?

The last year was an amazing year for cryptocurrency and blockchain development. There was an ICO explosion in the last six months of 2017 and you really started to see Bitcoin break not only into the mainstream, but into the school yard! I’ve had so many conversations with teenagers who have an interest in this and what’s even more interesting is that I’ve heard from many parents that their teenagers were the ones that inspired them to invest.

5) What can people catch you speaking about on stage at C3?

I will be speaking about why Generation Z are blockchain’s secret ally. Bitcoin might have ups and downs, but it has allies in the under 30s. Recent research shows that, more than the generations before them, millennials are disillusioned by the traditional stock market and more willing to ride out volatility and invest in cryptocurrencies. Crypto-natives, Generation Z, will fuel this even further. They are excited by blockchain — and the promise it brings to decentralise systems and build an economy that puts people over corporations. They are highly entrepreneurial — actively seeking out ways to make their own income. And they have a large purchasing power ($143 annual retail spend with $333 billion influence over annual household spend) — but limited ways of either getting paid or spending online beyond PayPal and parents’ credit cards. Cryptocurrencies, combined with the right regulation, could be the key — and the secret ally behind a blockchain boom. Keep an eye out because I will be bringing some secret allies with me!

If you want to know more about Melanie Mohr, her project and get valuable insights you can find her on stage at the conference in April